EU taking the wrong medicine for its ills

The decision by the European Commission on Wednesday to abolish its "non-market economy" list, which includes China, is a halfway house, if not a means of expediency, when it comes to trade relations with China.

By introducing a new anti-dumping methodology, the executive arm of the European Union claims that the bloc will now treat all World Trade Organization members equally in trade disputes, which may bode well for better trade relations between China and the EU.

The EU says the new "country-neutral" method is a "huge change" to the bloc's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy laws. And the move does mark progress compared with the non-binding decision of the European Parliament in May not to grant China market economy status.